I rode in the passenger seat for the first time, and for an extended period at speed.

And you know what...?

I believe I detected a little excessive wind noise.

:-)

Wind noise TSB, here we come!

I suggested when I got the car that maybe they should do a pre-emptive strike with the wind noise TSB, but they wanted to be sure it was really going to be needed after some miles on the car.

 

I am having mine done (PAWS) when I have the suspension noise 'fixed'.

 

What the wind sound like that you hear? In my car I hear a low noise on the driver side when I am at speed around 35 mph. I thought it was just the road but it seem consistent at that speed, it not loud, you can bearly hear it. But my other cars don't do it.

 

Have not ridden in back. Can you describe the noise? Where you in passenger side or driver side? Does it make a difference? Could you pinpoint the location? Thanks!

 

I've noticed it's increased a good degree in my RLX. I'm going to have it done as well when I go in for my next visit to get the suspension done.

 

I'm not sure what I hear is wind noise from the passenger side front. I would describe it more of a road noise coming in that I don't hear on the drivers side.
A defective seal on the door would cause that as well.
Or, I may just plain hear better out of my right ear than the left

Sometime in the future I am going to borrow a sound meter and try to determine where the noise is getting in while someone else drives the car.
I will post up my findings when I get some

 

How much wind noise is too much? I can hear wind noise at freeway speeds from the driver's seat. Can someone do a video of said wind noise so we know what we are looking for? In fact, when I have a chance, I may do so as well.

One would have thought the TSBs would have been done before the Sport Hybrids were allowed into dealer hands.

It's not a big bother for me so far, and can probably wait until the first oil change (i.e. probably the spring).

 

It's supposed to be a VERY quiet car.

If at 70 mph the wind noise is the dominant noise, I'd probably ask for the TSB.

It's possible that a wind noise would be noticeable in the Sport Hybrid, but not noteworthy in other RLX.

IMHO, of course. That's one dumb old man's opinion, not a policy statement.

:-)

 

TSB 14-021 - Wind Noise At Upper Rear Corner of Driver/Front Passenger Windows currently only applies to the 2014 RLX and does not include the 2014 RLX Sport Hybrid.

Although that could change if the wind noise diagnosis on anyone's 2014 RLX Sport Hybrid shows the same symptom.

The EPT foam pieces should be inexpensive and the paid warranty time is not too long, so hopefully your dealer is willing to accommodate your request, if you ask.

Hopefully no new rattles appear or any damage happens from the repair.

 

I've only seen the original TSB, which referred to *ALL* 2014 RLX.

Was there a subsequent amendment?

 

http://www.urvi.net/forumfiles/SB/B14-021.PDF <--It doesn't *say* that it's not applicable to the Sport Hybrid.

Why would it not be?

It is the same rubber as the others.

 

No. The TSB has not been revised.

If the TSB applied to the 2014 RLX Sport Hybrid, it would be listed under affected vehicles. They are separate models.

I checked ISIS and the only TSBs currently available for the 2014 RLX Sport Hybrid are 14-004 and 14-005, which are TQI related and are listed in the TSB sticky thread.

While I agree that the same parts may be used and the issue could exist, as of today it is not covered under the TSB.

 

Well. Shoot.

But thank you for looking.

 

This may be typical big company "efficiency" whereby a TSB can't be generated unless there have been complaints about a specific model having a specific deficiency even though another, related model with shared parts has already had enough complaints to generate a TSB related to the shared parts. While logic dictates that they apply the fix before selling the delayed Sport Hybrid units, simple math may tell them that only a very small percentage of PAWS RLX owners reported an issue with the wind noise and when that percentage is applied to the miniscule number of Sport Hybrids, they didn't expect more than a couple of complaints.

Just my guess, my two cents.

 

See TSB 14-047 - Front Door Sash Outer Trim Is Loose, Warped, or Causing a Wind Noise in the TSB sticky thread.

 

Thank you!

I'll check that out!

 

I believe I just heard the noise that is being discussed here. Car has 1200 miles and I think the glue/rubber/material has eventually reached its "settling point" and no longer a perfect fit. Will have this done at next/first oil change. Only apparent at 45+ mph and only when the external and internal ambient noise is at its minimal but given how quiet the car is...the wind/slight whistling noise is there....

 

I have it as well and it's noticeable usually around 50mph+ on super smooth interstate roads where there is very little road noise.

I've just refrained from having it as the TSB process seems very intrusive after reading through it. I'd rather avoid the risk of damage or rattles resulting from poor workmanship.

It's the same reason I've refrained from getting the illuminated door sills, which I really want bad, but holy cow is that install process extremely intrusive to the interior of the vehicle. Personally I dont see why they arent included by default. $60k car...$280 option...really?

 

Good point. I went and talked to the mechanic that did all the accessories work. I met him, looked at the work area, asked him how many cars he has taken care of, etc...I bit the bullet and had the remote start (very intrusive), and the outside work done, minus the side molding. As long as you are comfortable with who is going to do the work and at what time of day you should be good. But I can see where things could go worse. Clearly this is a preference and not a safety issue so you do have an option. I usually meet the people who work on my cars.

 

It is going to have to be covered by the TSB.

 

Just had my RLXh in to the dealer for a couple of minor things, and for the wind noise fix. They did both the 14-021 and 14-047 TSBs, as apparently both applied to the 2014 Sport Hybrid. I will post the results the next time I am out on a smooth piece of high speed highway.

 

Although this dealer is taking care of both TSB, the VIN range for 14-021 needs to be updated so that dealers understand that the TSB also applies to the KC2 model range (RLX Sport Hybrid).

A dealer who understands that 14-021 would clearly apply to KC2 models would have to submit a warranty procedure claim instead of applying the TSB.

 

My service record says "Performed TSB 14-021 and 14-047" and lists all the parts with no charge. They mentioned no difference to me, saying that they both applied to my car. The 021 is the smaller of the two, with only .6 hours and minor parts. The 047 involved 2.6 hours and more parts. I do not know what any of this means for how the dealer will get reimbursed, and I guess it doesn't matter to the owner?

 

Maybe Colin can tell us.

More importantly.... Did it work? :-)

 

Sorry, George, been stuck on city roads since it was done. As I know you know, the car is so quiet you need smooth highway, no trucks, and no foul weather to hear the wind noise in the first place. I will surely get a chance to test it over the next few days of travel and will report in immediately!

BTW, Happy Holidays to everyone.

 

I've asked for KC2 VIN to be added to TSB 14-021 in order to assist both owners and dealers in resolving the wind noise complaints.

It might be helpful if other KC2 owners did the same thing.

 

Well, I can't report success with the wind noise fix just yet. Back from a 400 mile trip and it seems that in doing the work last week, they have made the noise around the driver's door a bit worse. Not like the barely perceptible wind noise - more like the window is open a tiny sliver. I'm assuming that this is something that is not related to the fix itself, but something that was not put back correctly afterwards. Very surprising for my dealer. In any case, I am there first thing Monday morning and will report back after that and after I have been on the highway again.

But I do want to add that, despite this glitch, after every multi-hour trip I take, I feel distinctly less road fatigued than I used to in my '06 RL or in any other care I have owned. Not sure if it's the comfort of the seats, or the incredible quiet (even with the added noise from the window) or the wonderful road handling, or all of the above, but I have now taken four such trips and the difference is noticeable.

 

Uh oh!



Now I'm nervous.

 

I am not surprised....I had a wind noise problem in a previous vehicle and the attempt to make it better actually made it worse.

If I was you guys, I would think about it long and hard because after they start tinkering with it, if it makes it worse, there is no turning back.

 

Eh. Maybe I'll wait. The wind noise is not severe enough to bother me.

 

Guess I should have waited also, as it was a very small noise. But I will (presumably) find out tomorrow what happened and get it fixed. I admit it is a little scary.

 

Please let us know how that goes.

I've put mine off to the 5th, but I really want the noise fixed. If we don't know how to fix it without running the risk of what you are experiencing...well, I just don't know what.

:-)

The car is supposed to be so quiet that people notice and remark about it. As it is, it's not noisy, but normal. It's not supposed to be normal...it's supposed to be better than normal.

 

At my dealer waiting for my car. They think (but can't be certain yet) that the increased noise was caused by the foam added to the doors under TSB 021 causing a bit of flex that opened up an air gap, and that TSB 021 perhaps should not be applied to the Hybrid. We'll see when I get the car out on the highway, but for the moment I want to raise doubt about the 021 fix and the Hybrid. The problem is that it's really hard for these guys to do a meaningful road test on wind noise in such a quiet car in the middle of the city. More later...

 

Thanks for the feedback. I am debating the fix myself. I can tell the small amount of wind noise at 50+ on newer smooth paved asphalt; 60+ on smooth concrete, and 70+ in all conditions. But not so much that it really bothers me at this point in time.

 

The seals are the same.

I think that most of my noise is something that would be fixed by the newer TSB, however. That's just a guess based on where the noise is coming from on the passenger side, and noticing some water in a weird, unreachable place on the driver's side.

 

Can you describe the noise, I hear a very low whistle at around 35 MPH, nothing after that range and it not consistent, I notice it but not sure it worth the hassle of going to the dealer, complaining about it and having them tear the driver door apart.

 

Best way to describe it:

Open your palm and put it in front of your mouth with the thumb under you chin and your index finger on your nose. All your fingers are now aligned one in front of the other in front of your nose. Blow air gently through your mouth and the air will split half on one side of your hand and the other on the other. That is the sound I hear from top right of the driver side door.

 

Top right as you're looking at it from outside the car?

 

Correct.

 

Some good news. At the dealership yesterday, the tech who last week installed the 021 and 047 wind noise fixes, after listening to my description of the new noise that was created (almost as if the window was open a crack), decided to try removing a piece of foam installed in the 021 fix that he suspected might have opened an air channel by being slightly too large. He took the car for a test drive and thought it was better, but we decided that we would leave the work order open while I went off to Maine for the holiday, and that I would return next Tuesday to either confirm all was okay or to leave the car for further work on wind noises.

After driving 150 highway miles, I think that the "unfix" has worked. It has removed the noise from the driver's window that was created by the work done last week, and taken me back at least to the quiet I enjoyed when I got the car. It's gotten really hard to hear what are now minor differences in a very quiet car, but I did not hear on this trip the original wind noise that started this odyssey. So I would say that the 047 fix worked, or at least did not make things worse. That original wind noise could only be heard on smooth pavement with no traffic, and I did not have exactly those conditions today. I will keep listening for that original (small) noise.

My purpose in writing is to follow up on my previous warning about the problem created by the two TSBs. I think the 047 is fine, though I can't be completely certain that it killed the small wind noise until I have driven enough miles in the right conditions to know that it is gone completely. But I would advise staying away from the 021 fix, at least for the Hybrids, because it seems to have created worse noise in my car. Unfortunately, because we never closed out the work order, I did not find out exactly which piece of foam was causing the problem. When I go back on Tuesday, I will have the tech circle the errant foam piece on a copy of the TSB so I can post which piece it was.

So I am now back to at least as quiet as the car was originally, and probably better as I think the original small wind noise is gone due to the 047 fix. I will post on Tuesday the exact foam part from the 021 fix that they removed yesterday (because maybe the other parts, if any, from the 021 fix are useful). Meanwhile, George, I would stick with just the 047 fix and see how that goes. Whether the 021 fix is a good idea for the PAWS cars I have no idea; I only know that it created a worse noise problem in my Hybrid either because the doors in the two cars are different, or because it was a bad part, or because it was improperly installed, or because the gods really are crazy, or because the Hybrid is so quiet that the slightest change makes a loud noise!